For more than 20 years, 52-year-old Zhang Heshan has gone on an inspection tour every three days at a section of the Great Wall, first built over 2,200 years ago and now a World Heritage site, near his home village in north China's Hebei Province.

"My duty is to see if anyone is trying to steal bricks or doing any damage to the wall," said Zhang, a villager from Chengziyu Village in Funing County, Qinhuangdao City.

Zhang tells people about the importance of protecting the Great Wall and persuades people to leave if they are found damaging the monument.

"I also report what I have seen to the Funing County cultural heritage department," Zhang said.

The Great Wall was first built in the Warring States Period (476-221 BC).

Most experts say it starts at Jiayuguan Pass in northwestern Gansu Province and stretches for more than 6,700 kilometers to end at Shanhaiguan Pass on the shores of Bohai Bay in the east. The wall has been rebuilt many times, and many sections have suffered from serious wind and water erosion and from human destruction.

The Great Wall was included on the list of World Heritage sites in 1987.

Zhang said he has been fascinated by the Great Wall since he was a boy and has a deep love for it. "I can't bear any damage being done to the Great Wall," said Zhang, who became a voluntary protector more than 20 years ago.

Zhang is responsible for examining an 8-kilometer section of the Great Wall near his village. Sometimes, he stops people from digging for scorpions near the foundations of the wall and at other occasions, he persuades tourists not to carve characters on the wall or leave litter near the wall. He was granted official Great Wall protector status by the Funing County cultural heritage department three years ago.

Funing County boasts a 142.5-kilometer section of the Great Wall, divided into 18 parts and guarded by 18 protectors like Zhang.

Unlike other volunteers, all Great Wall protectors in Funing County are ordinary villagers living near the wall who have been entrusted with the task by the local cultural heritage authority.

Each protector makes more than 10 inspection tours on the wall each month and makes suggestions on how to better protect the unique monument. The State Cultural Heritage Administration plans to promote the practice of villager protectors in all areas along the Great Wall.